Someone Like You
by Wolf the swordsman
Summary: Naruto is assigned to a mission with a certain sand Kunoichi. They must go on a long journey together. What will happen along the way? Will they become something more than just friends. Rated M for language, future violence and future adult themes.
1. Meeting

Someone like you

Chapter-1 Meeting

**Author's note-Alright the first chapter. This is going to be action, romance with Naruto and Temari. I know Naruto and Temari will never be together in the manga, I just thought they are interesting paring. This story will take place after the three tails-arc but before the invasion of Pain arc. So here we go.**

It was a regular day in Konoha, like any other. The sun was shining bright, clouds passed overhead and villagers were out shopping and eating at their favorite restaurants. Everyone was happy. Except for one yellow haired, Genin.

Currently, Naruto was walking through Konoha's streets. His hands were tucked inside his pockets, with an annoyed look, evident on his face. He was previously training with determination all day, at training ground three. He was training with several different Jutsus, until he was forced to abruptly stop. _Why is it, every time I'm training, Tsunade always has to call me down to the Hokage tower? I thought I had the week off. _Tsunade requested Naruto down to the Hokage tower for another, significant mission that he had to be on. She didn't tell him what it was about. She just said it was urgent and he had to meet her as soon as possible. It wasn't like her to keep information from him.

Walking through the streets, he was almost there. He could see the red, Hokage tower in his sights.

At the Hokage tower-

Naruto arrived at the large tower and entered the enormous building. It was always hectic inside the tower, men and women were running around with papers in hand. They shouted across rooms and ran every direction. Naruto stopped at the front door, to watch the madness. _Wonder what's going on today?_ He walked past everyone and began walking up to Tsuande's office. Walking up the stone steps, he arrived at her office. He knocked on the door, waiting for a response.

"Come in." A light woman's voice said from inside the room. He opened the door and walked inside. When he entered, he observed the room.

Tsunade was sitting down at her desk and Shizune was standing right next to her, holding Ton-Ton in her arms. That only left one more person in the room.

A slender woman stood near the door, with her back facing Naruto. She was wearing a long, black kimono with a red sash wrapped around her waist. Naruto shifted his gaze up the woman's body. He noticed she had short blonde hair and her hair was in four separate ponytails. It was none other, Temari of Suna.

Naruto thought it was strange, Temari was in Kohana. _Why would Temari be here? The Chunin exams can't be going on right now? _He didn't think much more of it and walked past Temari, up to Tsunade's desk.

"Hello Naruto." Tsunade politely welcomed him. She was comfortably sitting back in her chair with a smile on her face.

"Hey granny. You wanted to see me about some mission? And what is Temari doing here?" Naruto lazily asked. He looked over his shoulder at the sand Kunoichi, standing near the door. Temari looked right back at him. He could see her teal eyes, staring right back into his. Her arms were crossed and she had an unusual looking scroll on her back.

"Naruto." Tsunade stated. He snapped out of it and turned his attention back to Tsunade.

"You are to accompany, Temari to Suna. She is carrying a legendary scroll and requires safe passage." Tsunade said in her professional voice. After hearing the news, Naruto's day went from bad, to worse.

"What? Why do I have to do it?" Naruto asked. Tsunade was taken back. Naruto was the last person in the world she would expect to turn down a mission. Temari stayed out of the conversation. She stood back and just watched the two of them, talk back and forth.

"What? When have you ever, declined a mission?" Tsunade asked.

"It's just." He muttered and shrugged. He looked up at the ceiling with a puzzled look apparent on his face.

"Yes?" Tsunade asked.

"It's just... At Ichiraku Ramen, they are serving free ramen all day tomorrow." Naruto replied. Tsunade slapped her forehead in frustration and Temari snickered.

"Look Naruto. Temari is on her own, and needs some back up." Tsunade explained. Temari sighed and walked up to Tsunade's desk. She knew when to stay out of it, but this was too much for her. She never asked for any help.

"Excuse me, but I can handle this on my own. I do not need someone slowing me down… And, nothing is going to happen, no one knows about this scroll." Temari explained. Tsunade was surprised Temari would decline any help.

"You see granny, she doesn't want my help." Naruto said. Both Naruto and Temari turned to the door and began walking out of the room. They were almost to the door, when Tsunade interjected.

"Hold it right there!" Tsunade yelled. They came to a halt, neither of them moved another muscle. They slowly turned back around, both of their faces were filled with fear. They could tell Tsunade has had enough. Tsunade stood up and slammed her hands down on her desk, causing the room to shake violently. Shizune slowly backed away from the now explosive Tsunade.

"Naruto! There is no one else in the village right now. All the shinobi are currently out on missions, and you know, your team is on a mission right now… I need you on this assignment." Tsunade turned her head over to Temari. "Temari. That is a legendary scroll you are carrying, who knows. There might be some assailants, who would kill to get their hands on it. You need someone to have your back. No ifs, ands, or buts." Tsunade declared. Naruto and Temari lowered their heads and sighed.

"Fine." Both of them simultaneously replied. Neither of them were happy with the situation. Tsunade looked satisfied and sat back down in her chair.

"Good. That's what I wanted to hear… Now, I know we usually have you in teams off four, but since there are only two of you, we will have to make an exception. Since this is a two man team, I will leave Temari in charge, since she is a Joinin." Tsunade stated. Temari looked pleased. Naruto on the other hand groaned. _Ah, could this get any worse, first I am missing a day of free ramen now Temari will be telling me what to do._

"So Naruto, do anything Temari tells you. Ok?" Tsunade said.

"Fine." He replied.

"Now, the both of you will be leaving bright an earlier, tomorrow. So, get some rest and pack everything you need." Tsunade stated. Temari and Naruto nodded their heads in agreement.

"Ok Temari, that is all. And Naruto, I want to talk to you." Tsunade stated. Temari nodded her head and left the room, leaving Naruto alone.

"What is it Tsunade?" He asked.

"Naruto. The scroll Temari is carrying, is very powerful. If anything happens, do whatever you can to protect her. I trust you with this mission." Tsunade stated.

"Yea, don't worry I can handle it." Naruto replied with a smile. Tsunade felt better Naruto was on this mission.

"Ok, good luck." Tsunade stated.

"Naruto stay safe." Shizune said. Naruto smiled and nodded his head. With that, Naruto left the room and entered the long hallway outside. _Great. _He stood there for moment, thinking to himself about what just happened. He walked back down the stone steps and outside the Hokage tower.

It was mid-day and the sun was slowly setting. Naruto walked through the streets back to his apartment. The streets were always filled with so many people. Parents chased after their children and people were laughing and having a great time. Naruto would always simply walk past everyone unnoticed.

It wasn't a long walk from the Hokage tower, to his apartment. In no time he made it back to his building. Walking up the steps, he felt drained. He made it to his door and entered. He dropped his keys on a cabinet and walked further into the apartment. The apartment was an utter mess, old dirty clothes were scattered on the floor and ancient boxes of ramen were scattered on a table.

Naruto slowly took of his orange and black tracksuit and sluggishly laid down onto his bed. He untied his black headband and placed it on to a dresser, near his bed. He got comfortable, wrapped his hands behind his head and stared up at the ceiling.

As he laid there, he couldn't stop thinking about the mission. _Why does Tsunade want me on this mission so much? I barely know Temari, and it will be just the two of us … At least I get to see Gaara again, it's been too long. I wonder how being a Kazekage has been? _No matter how hard he tried, the sand Kunoichi could not leave his mind. He would try to think of something else, but somehow it would always end up being Temari._ I barely know anything about her. We have barley talked to each other._ He tried to fall asleep, but their was too much on his mind.

Meanwhile at a small hotel near the edge of the village-

Temari was staying at a nice, small hotel. The leaf village paid for it, since she was there on official business. She was currently in her hotel room, getting ready for her long journey with Naruto. The room was small, it only had one room with a queen size bed in the middle.

She gently laid the scroll next to a wall, near the front door. _Well, I guess I will have some company, along the way to Suna. I don't know much about Naruto. _She thought about Naruto more and more. _He has grown up a lot in the past two years._ _I remember when he used to be a loud mouth brat all the time. _Temari snickered, she reminisced how Naruto used to be._ I kind of miss that. He is so grown up now._

She took of her black kimono and untied her four ponytails, causing her hair to gently flow down, over her shoulders. She beautifully got under her covers and got comfortable. _Having somebody else to have my back couldn't hurt. _Temari closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, with thoughts of Naruto floating around in her mind.

The moon shined bright and the stars illuminated the dark sky. Both Temari and Naruto slept in their beds, ready for the long journey ahead.

**Alright there is the first chapter. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it.**


	2. Departure

Chapter 2- Departure

**Alright the second chapter. Thank you guys for the reviews. **

It was another beautiful morning in Konoha. The morning air breezed against Naruto's apartment windows.

Naruto was lying on his bed, dead asleep. The sound of his alarm ringing, could be heard throughout his room. The thin walls in the building caused his neighbors to hear the loud beeping noise.

An old woman that lived under Naruto's apartment, could not stand the sound. She began banging her broomstick up on Naruto's floor. She slammed the wooden handle of the broom on her ceiling, trying her best to wake up the man.

"Young man, WAKE UP! That damn alarm has been ringing for too long!" The old lady yelled. The brash banging awoke Naruto. He slowly opened his eyes, he felt like his head was on fire. Opening his dim eyes to a bright sun, shining in through his window.

"What? I'm up, I'm up." Naruto lazily muttered. His head was stuffed into a pillow. The previous night he had trouble sleeping, and didn't fall asleep until late in the morning.

He slowly lifted his head up, off his pillow. His once spiky hair was now disordered. He slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes. Stretching his arms, he was ready for the day. _What time is it? _He gradually looked over at his clock. Once he saw the time, his eyes shot open. _Ah, shit! I'm going to be late. _He jumped off his bed and ran to grab some of his clothes. Running to his closet, he franticly searched for clothes.

He grabbed his tracksuit from his closet and struggled to yank it on. He pulled the orange pants up his legs and pulled his jacket, over his body. He grabbed a large backpack, filled with supplies and hurled it over his shoulders. He finished with tying his headband around his forehead.

He opened his window and leaped down to the ground, landing on the stone pavement. He stood up, and took a breath of fresh air. Then headed towards the front gate.

Naruto sprinted down streets, passing people, houses and small shops. Groups of villagers would get in his way and he would have to find ways around them.

He ran right past Ichiraku Ramen, without flinching. Running right through the sweet aroma of delicious ramen being cooked, doing his best, not to think about his favorite food being made. He only thought what Temari would say, if he was late.

Teuchi was currently cooking up some of his famous pork ramen, in his restaurant. He was wearing his white robes with his white chef hat. While he was cooking, he noticed his favorite customer, ran right past his restaurant. He immediately stopped cooking, to say hello to his favorite ninja.

Teuchi poked his head out from his restaurant. He could see Naruto running further down the street.

"Hey Naruto! Free ramen today." Teuchi yelled. Naruto instantaneously froze; his momentum went to a complete stop.

He slowly turned around, looking back at Teuchi. The second he heard the words free ramen, he pictured bowls and endless bowls of delicious ramen. The pork, the smell and the taste.

Teuchi looked at Naruto confused. Naruto stood still, fighting with himself whether or not he should grab a bowl of ramen. Every second, was another second Temari would be waiting. _There is no way I'm going to be late. _He couldn't keep his partner waiting. He would not waste any more time.

"Sorry Teuchi. Not today, I'm going to be late." Naruto yelled.

Teuchi stood still taking a moment for the words to sink in. His favorite customer, the man that would eat bowls and bowls of his ramen. Said no, to free ramen.

"What?" Teuchi shouted. He was astonished Naruto would pass up free ramen.

"I will buy five bowls of ramen, when I get back." Naruto yelled, his voice fading away as he ran further down the street. He grinned while running towards the gate and waved good-bye.

Teuchi could not believe what just happened. He slowly leaned back in to his restaurant. He got back to cooking ramen and serving his customers.

At the gate of Kohana-

Temari was idly standing at the front gate. She stood still, waiting impatiently for Naruto. She was wearing her regular attire, with her tessen and the small scroll hanging of her shoulder. Villagers passed back and forth, leaving and entering Kohana. Merchants and salesmen would try to sell foreign objects to gullible villagers.

Temari put a smile on her face, as people walked by. She hated waiting. _Where the hell is he? _She looked down the street, hoping she would see her leaf ninja comrade. Just her luck, she could see Naruto running her way. He was sprinting down the street, his speed was unmatched.

He came to a screeching halt, right beside her.

"Just on time, Naruto." Temari said.

"Great." Naruto replied, while catching his breath.

"Alright, it looks like you're ready." She said with a smile and looked out towards Suna.

"Are you prepared? It's a five days' walk." She asked. Naruto followed her gaze and looked out towards Suna.

"As ready, as I'll ever be." Naruto replied.

"Ok. You have enough supplies and your sleeping gear, right?" Temari asked.

"Of course." Naruto replied. He pointed to his backpack on his back.

"Then let's get going. The sooner we get there, the better." Temari declared. She began walking out of Kohana, down the dirt path towards Suna. She walked through the large gate, out on the narrow path. As she was walking, she couldn't hear a set of footsteps that should be right behind her. She stopped and looked back.

She noticed Naruto was standing still. He was gazing over the village, looking all over. Temari looked at him, confused, she didn't understand. _What is he doing?_

"Naruto!" Temari yelled. He snapped out of it. He turned to Temari and walked up to her.

"I wanted to take one last look at the village, before we leave." Naruto stated.

"Ok. We really should get going, it's a long walk to Suna." Temari explained.

"Alright, let's go." He replied. They began their long journey together. They walked past the large gate and walked on the path, the lush forest on either side of them. In five days' time they should be arriving in Suna, if nothing goes wrong.

Meanwhile at the Hokage tower-

Tsunade was presently in her office, sitting behind her desk. She was talking to the Shinobi that works with the messenger birds. The Shinobi was wearing his ninja getup.

"I want you to send word to Suna. Naruto and Temari are headed there way with the scroll. They should arrive in five days' time." Tsunade clarified.

"Yes Hokage Sama." The man replied and bowed. He left the room with the message. The moment the door closed and the Shinobi was gone, Tsunade slouched down in her chair. She was tired and had a whole day of work ahead of her. Looking down at her desk, she groaned. _Why can't I just have some sake right now._

The entire desk was filled with unsigned papers. The papers had to be filled out before the end of the day. She gradually picked up her pen and began to slowly sign paper, after paper.

Tsunade's assistant, Shizune was standing near a window, looking out towards the gate of Kohana. She couldn't shake this strange feeling she had. She couldn't stop thinking of Naruto, somehow getting hurt. _He shouldn't be out there, on his own. What if something horrible happens? _She needed to talk about this feeling she had with someone. There was only one person that would truly listen to her.

She sighed trying to gain Tsunade's attention.

Tsunade glared over at her assistant. She pretended like she didn't hear the sigh and returned back to her work.

_I didn't get her attention. _Shizune sighed again, this time being louder, really trying her best to catch Tsunade's attention.

Tsunade heard the sigh and knew Shizune wouldn't stop until they resolved, whatever she needed to be resolved. She stopped signing her papers and placed the pen down on her desk. She could tell Shizune was distrait. She leaned back in her chair, getting ready to hear Shizune's concerns.

"What is it Shizune?" Tsunade delicately asked. Shizune looked over at her Hokage.

She cleared her throat. "It's… Do you really think it's safe to send Naruto out at a time like this?" She asked, her face filled with worry. She couldn't bear the thought of Naruto getting hurt.

Tsunade knew it, she knew Shizune would be concerned about Naruto. Whenever he left the village, it was always Shizune to be worried.

"Shizune. Naruto will be fine. You are always worrying about him." Tsunade replied and began signing papers again. Shizune turned to her Hokage and planted her feet down.

"I guess, but don't you think- Tsunade interrupted Shizune mid-sentence. She looked up at her assistant, eyes wide open.

"Shizune. He will be fine. Now, let's get back to this paperwork. I would like to get some sake early tonight." Tsunade declared. Shizune hung her head low and sighed. _Tsunade is right_. _Naruto will be fine._

"Ok." Shizune replied. She let all the thoughts of Naruto getting hurt, drift away and focused on her work.

Naruto and Temari had left the village, having no idea what awaits them. They had just began there long journey together.

**Alright there is the second chapter. Thanks for reading.**


	3. Gazing at the stars

Chapter 3-Gazing at the stars

**Alright chapter three. **

Naruto and Temari had walked tremendously far towards Suna. They had been walking for quite some time, passing forests and small inns. They stayed silent the whole time. The only sound was leaves rustling in the wind and their feet pressing against the dirt path.

The dirt path was vacant. Every so often, a merchant selling items would pass by, but nothing out of the ordinary. The road from Kohana to Suna was never packed. Nor was it accompany to wildlife or any real beauty. The only thing to look at was the large trees on either side of the path and the occasional small inns along way.

Temari walked a few steps ahead of Naruto. He closely followed her, thinking to himself. He had all the time in the world to think about certain things. He always wondered about Temari, a woman he did not know many things about.

He couldn't bear the silence, he wanted to talk about something, anything. Walking for five days in silence would kill him. He thought of the first thing that came to mind.

He glanced over Temari. The first thing that came into view was the scroll. That small, unusual scroll she carried. _I haven't heard anything about this scroll?_ Naruto stared at it, looking close at its strange color and shape. It was red with an unusual looking shape. As unusual as anything he had seen before. No one had talked about, not even once. _Granny never spoke about it, I haven't heard a single word. _He wanted to learn more information on this so called legendary scroll.

"So… what's in the scroll?" Naruto asked, very intent to receive an answer. Temari quickly turned back to him. A gust of wind blew by, blowing Temari's and Naruto's hair.

"Naruto, the quicker we get to Suna the better. So let's just walk, nothing else." She explained as she continued to walk in front of him. A moment of silence went by. Naruto silently groaned to himself.

"Come on, don't you want to talk about something. We can't walk for five days and say nothing to each other." Naruto said with a hint of frustration.

Temari sighed and stood still. When she just thought, she didn't have to explain anything. She just wanted to get this mission over with as soon as possible. It wasn't like she hated having company, she just wanted to get home as soon as possible. She would never admit it, but she was starting to feel home sick even though that sounded dumb to her.

"Alight fine. What do you want to know?"

Naruto thought long and hard. There were several questions he wanted to ask. _Come to think of it, why would they send one person on a mission to carry such a legendary scroll?_ A scroll so legendary, would not a group of ninja, well-armed to the teeth protect it, suffice.

"Why did they send you on this mission alone?" He asked, with a puzzled face.

"If you must know, my brother Kankuro said it would be to tedious to walk with his older sister. And Garra is occupied all day he would never leave his village unprotected." She explained.

"Anything else?"

"No." Naruto replied.

"Ok, if we could cut the chit chat, maybe we will make it on time." She said, and began walking down the path. Naruto followed.

Hours went by. Nothing but walking down the dirt path. The sun was setting and it was dim out.

They continued walking in silence. They were now far away from any civilization. It was completely dark, and neither could see five yards in front of their feet.

Naruto noticed something was wrong. The air smelled foul and he heard rustling behind some of the trees. He stopped and turned around, listening diligently to the noise. Twigs cracked followed by low whispers behind the lush forest, ten yards away. The sounds were low and fast and did not stop as they walked.

"Temari." Naruto whispered. She stopped and turned back to her comrade with a questioned expression across her face.

"What?" She replied. Naruto pointed to a large oak tree. She followed his gaze over to the large tree. Squinting her eyes, she could see what looked like a silhouette. She could scarcely see a silhouette of a large man standing behind the tree.

"I see him." She whispered. They nodded to each other.

"Come on out! Don't play us for fouls, we know your there!" Naruto yelled.

The man stood still behind the tree. He whispered to someone. The whispers escalated until a loud thump… then nothing.

The man began to walk out from behind the tree. "Oh no… you found me. What a shame." The man said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. He walked out from behind the tree with his hands held high. The man was very large, with a pot belly and a snout for a nose. On either side of him were two shorter men. The men wore rags as clothes and rags for shoes. His accomplices were short and carried two small curved swords on their back. They also wore black hoods over their heads, covering most of their skin. The only thing Naruto could see was their uncanny eyes. The men carried strange weapons Naruto had never seen before. Their weapons were a dark shade of black.

Naruto and Temari stood ready, for any situation. They were prepared to grab weapons or make hand signs, at a moment's notice.

The large man stood forward. He had a strange grin across his face. "We were going to kill you, quick and easy. Stab you right in the back. You wouldn't have felt a thing." He said and chuckled to himself. The two shorter men chuckled with him.

Naruto growled and clenched his fists. The large fellow looked at him and grinned.

The man unsheathed his dagger from his belt, the dagger scraping against the sheath. "So, why don't you just give me everything you have, and I won't have to kill you ninja." He demanded with a grin, and pointed the sharp dagger towards Naruto. Naruto and Temari were not fazed by these men, they were just common thieves.

"Yea right. You couldn't lay a single scratch on us." Naruto declared with a smirk. Temari snickered. The man looked at the two ninja laughing at him. His hands began to shake, and he lost his temper. The man had a short temper.

"You little brat!" The man yelled with spit spitting out of his mouth. He raised his dagger and charged Naruto. The other thieves followed suit. They unsheathed there curved swords and charged Naruto.

Temari reached for her Tessen, but she didn't need to. Out from the bushes, two shadow clones leaped. Naruto had prepared the shadow clones before the whole conversation. They flew through the air and brought down the two short thieves. The shadow clones grabbed the thieves by the head and brought them down to the ground. Their head's slammed against the dirt and they were down on the ground before they knew what happened.

The thieves tried to get up but the clones had them pinned. The shadow clones grabbed kunai and placed the kunai behind the thieves' necks. They could feel the sharp cold steel on their skin and knew these ninja's were serious. The shadow clones kept the men down on the ground and waited.

The last large thief was still charging Naruto. It took him a while to run ten yards, since his large build.

He lunged the dagger forward towards Naruto's face. The dagger was getting closer and closer.

At the very last second, Naruto dogged the attack. The dagger missed his face by a few inches. The large man's eyes grew wide, shocked. He was now completely open to a attack. Naruto raised his fist and landed a ferocious punch to the man's face. The thief's dagger scraped across Naruto's cheek giving him a thin line of blood and Naruto's knuckles pressed against the large man's cheek.

The impact sent the large thief soaring in the air and landed face first into the grass, unconscious. His legs were stuck up in the air and dropped down with a thud, into mud.

Temari stood back, impressed with her comrade's skills. She didn't have to lift a finger. _Naruto is a better fighter than I thought. _Naruto turned back to her with a smile across his face. She noticed the thin line of blood across his cheek.

"Naruto you're bleeding." Temari said concerned. Naruto raised his finger up to the blood.

"I will be fine, it's just a scratch." Naruto assured. Temari nodded and looked over to the men on the ground.

"Nice work, you had all three down on the ground in a second." Temari declared. While she complimented her teammate, she let her guard down.

Naruto noticed more rustling in the bushes behind her. He could see it coming, his eyes opened wide.

One last thief jumped out from behind the trees. He held a dagger drawn, aimed for Temari's head.

Naruto rushed towards her. "Temari look out!" He yelled. He pushed her out of the way and leaped up towards the thief, catching him midair. His right arm grabbed the thief's right arm and his left clutched his throat. With a loud thud, he brought the thief down to the ground.

The ground took the impact of the two men. Naruto clutched the thief's throat and pushed his knee down into his stomach. The thief groaned in pain.

"Going to kill a girl from behind, huh!" Naruto roared, his eyes filled with rage. Stabbing someone in the back was terrible in his eyes.

"Fuck you! Leaf ninja." The thief yelled and spat in Naruto's face. The spit hit Naruto's face and he wiped it off. Naruto slammed the thief's head down into the ground. The grass and mud were indented by the thief's head.

"Stealing innocent people's money and killing them!?" Naruto roared. Temari stood back and watched astonished. She never saw Naruto take control of the situation so well. _He would have been fine on this mission by himself._

"I don't have to… listen to you, ninja." The thief tried to speak with Naruto's hand clutched around his throat. Naruto looked over to Temari.

"What should we do with them?" He asked. Temari looked over to the two thieves' held by the shadow clones and the large man in the ground. It did disgust her, stealing people's money and killing them. She thought of a cruel punishment.

"We will tie them up to a tree, Left to rot." Temari said while she stared into the thief's eyes. The thief groaned.

"Alright, tree it is." Naruto lifted the thieves up and dragged them over to the large oak tree. He pulled out some rope from his backpack and tied the four men up to the tree. He tied a strong knot and stood up.

"That should do it. What do you think Temari?"

"I think it's perfect." Temari and Naruto smirked. The four men had the rope strictly around there stomachs and over their arms, so they couldn't move.

"Should we carry on?" Naruto asked.

"Of course." Temari replied. They began walking down the path. The thieves tried to pull their arms up, but the rope was too tight. One of them looked up to see the ninja walking away.

"I think it's a shame." One of the thieves' said. Temari and Naruto heard him and stopped walking.

"What?" Naruto asked.

"I could have killed you sand ninja. Nice and slow." The thief said with a grin. Naruto could not believe this man, his words sickened him.

"Shut your mouth." Naruto stated.

"It's no mater you know." The thief said.

"What are you talking about?" Temari asked. The thief looked up at Temari and smiled.

"What is it, five days walk?. . . If we don't get you, the rest of them will. You have a long walk to go and the night is young. Soon enough you brats will die." The thief said and grinned.

Naruto walked up to the thief, he grasped his fist. Raising his fist in the wind ready to strike the thief's head. "Shut…up." He brought his fist down to the thief's skull. The thief took the hard punch, and was knocked out cold.

The loud blow awoke the large thief. He looked down at the rope around his body. Naruto walked away from the tree.

"Wait! You can leave me like this!" The man desperately yelled. Naruto and Temari stopped and turned back.

"Maybe you should have thought about that before you tried to rob someone. And don't worry someone will come along at some point... maybe." Temari replied. They continued walking.

The thief continued trying to break free.

Naruto and Temari walked far from the tree. The entire time Temari had several thoughts running through her mind about Naruto. She never saw him like this.

"Hey Temari, come on." Naruto yelled. She lost track of where she was. Looking up she could see Naruto was far ahead of her. She rushed up to him.

"My mind was just off somewhere else." Temari stated. Naruto nodded and they continued walking.

It was late in the evening, the moon was out shining bright. They walked for hours, both tired, dragging their feet along.

"Naruto we have walked long enough. We need to rest." Temari stated.

"Alright." Naruto agreed. They left the path and walked past the trees, into the forest. The forest was filled with trees and wild life. It was pure beauty, the colorful leaves, and deer everywhere.

Temari found a small place where to make camp. It was a small plot of soft grass without any rough bumps in the ground.

"This is good Naruto." He nodded and took off his back pack and placed it gently down on the grass.

"We'll need a fire. Try to find some firewood." She stated.

"Alright I will be right back." Naruto walked away into the darkness, searching for some fire wood.

Temari took out her sleeping bag. Flipping the bag out in the air, it rolled open. She gently laid the bag down on a soft spot of grass. _I hate sleeping on this dreadful ground. _Temari walked over to a tree near the camp. She placed the scroll and her Tessen up against the tree.

She sat down with her back against the tree. _I need to eat something. _The entire day she was walking on a couple of chestnuts she ate before the trip. The lack of food caused her stomach to grumble.

_A whole day of walking and all I have are these damn chestnuts. _The bag of chestnuts hung off her shoulder. She grabbed the small black pouch and opened it. The smell of old chestnuts wafted into the air. She was starving and grabbed a hand full of her favorite food.

Time passed by. No sign of Naruto. Temari wondered about her fellow blonde. _Did he get lost? He should be back by now?_

More time passed. Temari would close her eyes and slowly drift off to sleep. She would remember where she is and shake her head. The entire time she waited, she couldn't get what the thief said off her mind. _Who were those guys? What did he mean, the rest will get us?_ What the thief said, got under her skin, she didn't know why but it did.

Right at that very moment, there was rustling in the bushes nearby. Temari stood up and grabbed her Tessen.

"Show yourself." She demanded. Temari held her Tessen ready to use it, if needs be. She eagerly waited for the one who caused the noise to walk out from the darkness.

Out from the bushes walked Naruto. He saw Temari with the Tessen in her hands ready to attack.

Temari saw it was Naruto and sighed relieved and lowered her Tessen.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"Yea, I'm fine." She replied.

In Naruto's arms was a pile of fire wood. Small tree branches and wood logs. He walked into the middle of the camp and dumped the wood down on the dirt.

"Nice, you found some wood." She stated.

"Yea, took me a while but I found some branches." He replied.

"Could you get a fire going, I'm freezing." She asked.

"Yes of course my lady." Naruto said with a smile.

"Shut up." Temari replied.

He began placing the fire logs in a circle. The logs were neatly placed in a small circle. He placed the rest of the logs in the middle and lit a match and dropped it down in the fire pit. The logs began to burn small flames.

Naruto pulled out his sleeping bag and sat down near the roaring fire. Temari sat down on the opposite side on her sleeping bag. Naruto grabbed some food from his backpack and ate near the fire. Temari kept eating her cheasntuts. They didn't say anything, just stared at the flames. Temari could not stop taking glances at Naruto. She looked at him differently, he wasn't the same small kid she remembered. It had been a while since she saw someone fight like him.

Temari broke the silence. "I haven't seen you fight in a long time. You didn't need any help against those thieves." Naruto was surprised by her statement.

"Thanks. I guess all my training paid off, and those guys were just common thieves, they didn't have any jutsus."

"Yea, I guess."

Naruto lied down and rested his head down. "I'm worn out. I'm going to rest." They were both exhausted from the long walk.

Temari lied down and closed her eyes. She drifted off to sleep with the fire roaring and cracking. The last thing she could see was the stars in the sky. They both fell asleep in their sleeping bags near the roaring fire.

Late in the night-

In the middle of the night, Temari awoke. She slowly opened her eyes to the moon lit sky. _I can never fall asleep._ She glanced over past the fire pit, to Naruto's sleeping bag. The bag was empty. Temari looked stunned and immediately stood up.

She rushed over to the empty bag. Kneeling down, all she found was crumbs. She searched the area and found nothing. _What the?_ She stood up and walked past trees. She searched feverously and found nothing. She walked further and further.

Off in the distance she could see the color orange beside a tree. She walked closer and found Naruto sitting with his back up against a tree looking up at the night sky.

"What are you doing?" Temari asked. Naruto looked up to her.

"I couldn't fall asleep, and I decided to walk out here." He replied and padded the ground next to him.

"What?" Temari asked.

"Come sit down."

"Why?"

"Because." He replied.

Temari shrugged. _I guess why not. _She slid her body down and sat directly next to Naruto. She looked up at the night sky, the pitch black sky was filled with several bright stars.

"Why are you sitting out here, by yourself?" Temari asked.

"Because, look." Naruto replied and pointed to the night sky. Temari never saw such a beautiful night sky.

"The night sky looks beautiful." Temari stated. She was focused on the beautiful sky.

"When I was younger I would look up at the stars every night. Sometimes I would look up and think about my parents. How I would never meet them. The friends I have lost and gained. Everything that has happened to me." Naruto said looking up at the stars. Temari looked over to him. She never heard him talk to her about anything before.

"I knew my father, I knew him all too well. He was always forcing my brother Gaara to do terrible things." Naruto listened closely. "No one wanted to be friends with me, everyone feared me because of my father." She explained.

"I know how that can be." Naruto knew that all too well.

"Naruto." Temari gently said.

"Yes?"

"I never had the chance to tell you this."

"What?" He replied.

"I know I am not always the best when it comes to talking with you. But…I am so thankful. You saved my brother's life and if it wasn't for you, he would have never became the Kazekage. I want you to know… Thank you." A moment of silence, he didn't know what to say. The cool breeze pressed against his cheek. He was stunned, never in his life did he think Temari would say that to him.

"I was glad I could help. Gaara is one of the few people who truly understands me, I had to save him. Thanks Temari, it means a lot to me you would say that." He replied.

For some reason they both felt safe. Time passed and they did not move from the tree. It had been a long time since Temari felt this comfortable. Her head was lying back on the tree and she would close her eyes every so often. She finally closed her eyes for the night and let her head gently lay down on to Naruto's shoulder. He was too tired to notice and let his head lay down on top of hers. They both drifted off to sleep. The moon lit sky kept them company, as they laid against the tree. Neither knew they fell asleep together.


End file.
